The Stars are Also Fire (Harvest of Stars, #2)

From Publishers Weekly In this semi - sequel to last year's Harvest of Stars , Anderson, winner of seven Hugos and three Nebulas, gets back on track. Where its predecessor was disjointed, unbalanced and clogged with capitalist-libertarian preaching, this novel offers suspense, vivid writing and appealing characters wrestling with a big philosophical problem: Is a peaceful, stable life under the benign rule of superintelligent machines a utopia--or comfortable slavery? To explore this question, Anderson traces two converging plot lines. In one, Dagny Beynac--a descendant of Anson Guthrie, founder of the vastly powerful Fireball Enterprises--devotes her life to preserving peace on the Moon, in the process becoming the progenitor of a new race of genetically engineered "Lunarians." Centuries after her death, the solar system is governed by the "cybercosm," a network of machine intelligences--but a secret preserved since Dagny Beynac's time could threaten the cybercosm's hegemony. Ian Kenmuir, a space pilot in the service of the Lunarians, and Aleka Kame, a human ally of the genetically engineered "metamorphs" of Earth, race against time, their own consciences and the deadly pursuit of the cybercosm's agent Venator to bring the secret to light. Though Anderson's politics still color the tale, Kenmuir and Kame are never so certain of themselves or the answers as were Guthrie and others in Harvest , and the result is an engrossing story that leaves the reader wondering about the human need for fresh horizons, adventure and danger. Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. From Library Journal As human governments labor to construct a habitat in space that will enable Earth's population to exploit the mineral resources of its moon, a small group of Lunarians, genetically altered for survival in low gravity, search the past to find a way to preserve their way of life and their independence. Spanning 500 years, Anderson's latest novel offers a tale of dynastic intrigue and high adventure as two distinct visions of human destiny struggle for ascendancy. Combining complex, believable characters with a skillfully orchestrated plot, the author of Harvest of Stars (Tor Bks., 1993) continues to demonstrate his storytelling excellence. Recommended for most libraries. Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. Humans and their genetically altered descendants struggle to find their place in a universe controlled by a benevolent artificial intelligence in this brilliant classic of future speculation On a far-future Earth, a linked system of artificial intelligences called the cybercosm runs the planet and the universe far more efficiently than any flesh and blood ruler ever could, in essence rendering the human race obsolete. On the Earth's moon, genetically engineered Lunarians carrying the DNA of Dagney Beynac—a descendant of the legendary Anton Guthrie, founder of the powerful and visionary Fireball Enterprises—struggle to preserve their lives, their freedom, and their satellite's resources in the face of threats posed by encroaching humans and controlling machines. Over a span of five centuries, tensions have increased in the wake of the political and technological revolutions that reshaped their universe. And suddenly radical change is in the offing once more, as a secret kept hidden since the earliest days of Lunar colonization is about to be revealed—one that could effectively shut down the cybercosm and plunge the universe into chaos. Poul Anderson advances the worlds-shattering circumstances he so brilliantly introduced in Harvest of Stars, creating a vision of the future that is at once astonishing, provocative, and troubling. A true science fiction classic, The Stars Are Also Fire explores deep questions about the nature, complexity, and worth of humankind in an unforgettable novel considered by many to be Anderson's masterpiece.

Larry Niven called Harvest of Stars "a masterpiece."

Now Poul Anderson returns to the same brilliantly conceived future to tell a story of revolution and liberation on the Moon.

In the early days of the next century, Dagney Beynac, descendant of the legendary Anson Guthrie, becomes a heroine of a new Lunarian civilization that struggles to break free of the influence of Earth. Centuries later, fragments of humanity search for some way to survive in a system that no longer seems to hold a place for them. The only solution lies in Dagney's distant past.

The sequel to "Harvest of Stars". On Earth, the cybercosm has demonstrated that it can manage the planet far better than humans ever did, and in doing so raises the question: are humans obsolete? Dagney Beynac, descendant of Anson Guthrie, may hold the key to humanity's reinvention. Set in the same universe as "Harvest of Stars", this work begins in the early days of the next century. The fragments of humanity on Earth and Lunar search for some way of survival in a system that only seems to have a place for machines. The one solution lies in the distant past. In the early 21st century the lunar colony struggles to become independent of Earth. Centuries later the solar system is dominated by machine intelligences, and humans must survive in a system that no longer needs them Lilisaire, Wardress of Mare Orientale and the Cordillera, at Zamok Vysoki, summons the captain Ian Kenmuir, wheresoever he be.